Guitar and Pear-Shaped

[Dave Martin]

That's Ernie Newton playing bass. I haven't yet found out more about his bass.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Dave Martin

if y'all don't know who Bob Moore is, you should do a search; you could make a pretty strong argument that Bob invented country bass. He started his session career in 1949 and played on something around 10,000 sessions, including the ones that gave us all of Patsy Cline's hits, all of Marty Robbins' hits and even the Elvis records that were recorded in Nashville, like "Teddy Bear". He also played on records by Jim Reeves, Johnny Horton, Roy Orbison, Ray Price, Brenda Lee, Paul Simon (that's him on The Boxer) and a zillion others. And by the way, he still plays great. But I digress...

According to Bob,that's Ernie Newton playing bass, Louis Ennis on rhythm guitar and Marvin Hughes on piano. Ernie played with (among others) Bill Monroe, Earl Scruggs, The Osborne Brothers and Kitty Wells. In other words, he's a more seasoned (and better) bassist than this video makes it appear. I'm trying to find out now if Ernie is still alive, and what happened to the bass.

Ok, but unless he was known for playing a Cornerless bass, this isn't the place to talk about him. Show me a picture of him with an Italian or Spanish Guitar shaped bass and then we are in business..

I don't think the population of Italian or Spanish basses has any familiarity at all with the names mentioned above, sorry.

[Dave Martin]

Originally Posted by Ken Smith

Ok, but unless he was known for playing a Cornerless bass, this isn't the place to talk about him. Show me a picture of him with an Italian or Spanish Guitar shaped bass and then we are in business..

I don't think the population of Italian or Spanish basses has any familiarity at all with the names mentioned above, sorry.

Well, Ken, Ernie Newton WAS playing a cornerless bass in the video. Nevertheless, I'll remove the reference. It's your forum, after all.

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Dave Martin

Well, Ken, Ernie Newton WAS playing a cornerless bass in the video. Nevertheless, I'll remove the reference. It's your forum, after all.

Ok, thank's for clearing that up.

Those that may have played an old Cornerless bass or two from the 18th or 19th century will have a special affinity for them. They seem to vibrate a bit more freely than basses with corners of any type. They are also very awkward to carry but not to play.

[Thomas Erickson]

Maybe it has been covered and I missed it - but -

What is the thinking on corner blocks for these corner-less basses? Do the existing ones have them? If not, should they? I'm not sure why really, I like the look, but the whole idea of a corner-less bass seems to me like a flexible-flyer kind of deal... heheh...

As far as practicality with no corners, that is in terms of carrying/leaning and also playing I suppose, is it actually difficult to live with? Or just a matter of getting used to...

[Ken Smith]

Originally Posted by Thomas Erickson

Maybe it has been covered and I missed it - but -

What is the thinking on corner blocks for these corner-less basses? Do the existing ones have them? If not, should they? I'm not sure why really, I like the look, but the whole idea of a corner-less bass seems to me like a flexible-flyer kind of deal... heheh...

As far as practicality with no corners, that is in terms of carrying/leaning and also playing I suppose, is it actually difficult to live with? Or just a matter of getting used to...

I guess I will try answering one thought at a time with some modulation as necessary.

Cornerless means basically no corners. Blocks as Corner Blocks will not be needed as there are no corners to glue to the blocks. I have watched many basses in progress being made and they are built from the Blocks and then onward.

Ass far as leaning a bass, in modern times in Orchestra leaning a bass on a chair is normal. Wedging it in the corner is ok for one bass but where do you get 8 corners to lean the section of bass?.. lol.. Then, there is just laying it down on its side which is what I have had to do on most occasions when taking this beast of mine out for a job.

I have seen some basses made with one piece ribs per side but had pasted/glued-on outer corner blocks but they were slightly rounded, not sharp at the edges. They also had corners on the top and back. The inside of the ribs were smooth all around on the one I examined internally. One bass I saw had corners on the plates, smooth one piece ribs and small blocks, 8 of them, glued to the ribs and under each corner of the top and back. They were beautifully scalloped and the curves of the chisel matched the button of the scroll. These ribs were scored inside to help bending and the linings were scored as well. This was a Guitar maker in my mind without any doubt.

Of all the cornerless basses I have seen in person and pictured, they look to me like an elongated guitar, shaped between a violin and viola d'gamba in form. This was the way the Italians made them. Many of the Luthiers were cross trained in Guitars, Mandolins, Viols and Violins as well.

The ribs on one bass I saw that were in excellent overall condition and scored internally were from a hard wood that was not at all thin. This helped I am sure keep the bass stable over the years. Another one that I own has laminated ribs of an original design. Vertical grained spruce with the grain running from top to back, bent all around in 2 pieces joining at the upper and lower blocks with a thinner outer layer of burled hard maple.

This is a very old bass and I do not see any deformity in the bass due to the cornerless design. It must have been made very well although nontraditional for the violin school. More of a cross-over design. This is one of the best sounding basses I have ever heard in my life, period.

Now, on carrying one of these basses with no corners at all, you have only the fingerboard and neck to grab for lifting and moving. Not so easy but you can get used to it.

[Thomas Erickson]

Cornerless means basically no corners. Blocks as Corner Blocks will not be needed as there are no corners to glue to the blocks. I have watched many basses in progress being made and they are built from the Blocks and then onward.

Thanks Ken, that's pretty much what I was getting at. Interesting.